Perfect plate

ABSTRACT

A line of both disposable and reusable improved dishware comprising outer edges that are curved or folded upward and inward, around 40% of the perimeter of the dish thereby ensuring that food does not spill over the sides when one is scooping up food to eat structured and arranged to provide consumers young and old with dishes that help keep the food on the plate or in the bowl while eating, resulting in less mess, less waste of food, and less cleaning.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

The present application is related to and claims priority from prior provisional application Ser. No. 62/597,066, filed Dec. 11, 2017 which application is incorporated herein by reference.

COPYRIGHT NOTICE

A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains material which is subject to copyright protection. The copyright owner has no objection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of the patent document or the patent disclosure, as it appears in the Patent and Trademark Office patent file or records, but otherwise reserves all copyright rights whatsoever. 37 CFR 1.71(d).

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The following includes information that may be useful in understanding the present invention(s). It is not an admission that any of the information provided herein is prior art, or material, to the presently described or claimed inventions, or that any publication or document that is specifically or implicitly referenced is prior art.

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates generally to the field of food plates and more specifically relates to a line of both disposable and reusable improved dishware comprising outer edges that are curved or folded upward and inward, around 40% of the perimeter of the dish thereby ensuring that food does not spill over the sides when one is scooping up food to eat structured and arranged to provide consumers young and old with dishes that help keep the food on the plate or in the bowl while eating, resulting in less mess, less waste of food, and less cleaning.

2. Description of the Related Art

A plate is a broad, concave, but mainly flat vessel on which food can be served. A plate can also be used for ceremonial or decorative purposes. Most plates are circular, but they may be any shape, or made of any water-resistant material. Generally plates are raised round the edges, either by a curving up, or a wider lip or raised portion. Vessels with no lip, especially if they have a more rounded profile, are likely to be considered as bowls or dishes, as are very large vessels with a plate shape.

Various attempts have been made to solve problems found in food plates art. Among these are found in: U.S. Pat. No. 6,637,614 to Håkan Bergkvist; U.S. Publication No. 2008/0203099 to David F. Zak; and U.S. Pat. No. D197,245 to John P. Bateson. This prior art is representative of food plate with a raised edge on the surface of the plate.

Ideally, improved dishware should be user-friendly and safe in-use and yet would operate reliably and be manufactured at a modest expense. Thus, a need exists for a line of both disposable and reusable improved dishware comprising outer edges that are curved or folded upward and inward, around 40% of the perimeter of the dish thereby ensuring that food does not spill over the sides when one is scooping up food to eat structured and arranged to provide consumers young and old with dishes that help keep the food on the plate or in the bowl while eating, resulting in less mess, less waste of food, and less cleaning and to avoid the above-mentioned problems.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In view of the foregoing disadvantages inherent in the known food plates art, the present invention provides novel Improved Dishware (Entitled Perfect Plate). The general purpose of the present invention, which will be described subsequently in greater detail is to provide a line of both disposable and reusable improved dishware comprising outer edges that are curved or folded upward and inward, around 40% of the perimeter of the dish thereby ensuring that food does not spill over the sides when one is scooping up food to eat structured and arranged to provide consumers young and old with dishes that help keep the food on the plate or in the bowl while eating, resulting in less mess, less waste of food, and less cleaning.

Improved dishware comprising: a bottom surface; an outer edge portion; a top surface including a main surface area; and a curved wall. Wherein the bottom surface is adapted to support the improved dishware upon a support surface. Wherein the outer edge portion includes an outer perimeter around the improved dishware. Wherein the main surface area is adapted to retain food products thereon. Wherein the curved wall is spaced from the outer perimeter, extends upwardly from the main surface area, extends around a portion of the main surface area, and is adapted to hold the food products in position upon the main surface area.

The present invention holds significant improvements and serves as Improved Dishware. For purposes of summarizing the invention, certain aspects, advantages, and novel features of the invention have been described herein. It is to be understood that not necessarily all such advantages may be achieved in accordance with any one particular embodiment of the invention. Thus, the invention may be embodied or carried out in a manner that achieves or optimizes one advantage or group of advantages as taught herein without necessarily achieving other advantages as may be taught or suggested herein. The features of the invention which are believed to be novel are particularly pointed out and distinctly claimed in the concluding portion of the specification. These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the present invention will become better understood with reference to the following drawings and detailed description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The figures which accompany the written portion of this specification illustrate embodiments and method(s) of use for the present invention, Improved Dishware (Entitled Perfect Plate), constructed and operative according to the teachings of the present invention.

FIG. 1 shows a perspective view illustrating improved dishware in an in-use condition according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a front perspective view illustrating a plate embodiment of the improved dishware according to an embodiment of the present invention of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a top perspective view illustrating the plate embodiment of the improved dishware according to an embodiment of the present invention of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view illustrating a curved wall of the improved dishware according to an embodiment of the present invention of FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view illustrating a bowl embodiment of the improved dishware according to an embodiment of the present invention of FIG. 1.

The various embodiments of the present invention will hereinafter be described in conjunction with the appended drawings, wherein like designations denote like elements.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

As discussed above, embodiments of the present invention relate to food plates and more particularly to a line of both disposable and reusable Improved Dishware (Entitled Perfect Plate) comprising outer edges that are curved or folded upward and inward, around 40% of the perimeter of the dish thereby ensuring that food does not spill over the sides when one is scooping up food to eat structured and arranged to provide consumers young and old with dishes that help keep the food on the plate or in the bowl while eating, resulting in less mess, less waste of food, and less cleaning

Generally speaking, the Perfect Plate comprises a specially designed line of both disposable and reusable bowls and plates that are augmented with an outer perimeter that is curved or folded upward and inward.

Disposable Perfect Plates and bowls could be offered in paper or cardboard material, while reusable dishes could be produced in durable, dishwasher-safe hard plastic, metal, or ceramic varieties. Regardless of material, these plates and bowls could be sold in various sizes to accommodate different types of foods and meals. As an example, a standard Perfect Plate could measure approximately twelve inches (12″) in diameter, 1½ to 2″ in depth, and 21.98-inches in circumference. Bowls could be 4 to 5″ in depth and various circumferences. Providing the unique aspect of the product, the “lip” or outer edge would be curved (for reusable units; paper units could be folded) upward approximately one and one-half inches (1½″). This curvature would cover approximately 40% of the dish's perimeter. Other design considerations could include incorporating non-skid, rubberized ridges on the bottom for stability, as well as packaging Perfect Plate dinnerware with a specially designed storage rack to facilitate neat and easy stacking.

Attractive as well as practical, this product could be produced in a wide array of colors and designs. The Perfect Plate would provide diners with a simpler, more effective means of managing loose food items while eating. An instant “wedge” that serves to ensure that beans, corn, peas, rice, soups, cereal, and similar foods are easily scooped onto a fork or spoon, the Perfect Plate would eliminate the messes that can result from foods and liquids spilling out over the sides. As a result, the Perfect Plate would offer a neat, hygienic assist in scooping all loose foods on the dish, with diners essentially only needing one hand to manage their favorite foods. Such simplicity would make the Perfect Plate especially ideal for children, the elderly, and individuals who suffer limited hand mobility and often have trouble keeping a steady hold on their utensils. Dishwasher safe and fabricated of durable, high quality components, the reusable Perfect Plate products should withstand years of continued use.

Referring to the drawings by numerals of reference there is shown in FIGS. 1-4, perspective views illustrating improved dishware 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Improved dishware 100 comprising: bottom surface 110; outer edge portion 120; top surface 130 including main surface area 140; and curved wall 160. Wherein bottom surface 110 is adapted to support improved dishware 100 upon support surface 114 as shown in FIG. 1. Wherein outer edge portion 120 includes outer perimeter 124 around improved dishware 100. Wherein main surface area 140 is adapted to retain food products 104 thereon as shown in in-use condition 106 of FIG. 1.

Wherein curved wall 160 is spaced from outer perimeter 124, extends upwardly from main surface area 140, extends around a portion of main surface area 140, and is adapted to hold food products 104 in position upon main surface area 140. Wherein curved wall 160 includes curved center section 170 and straight outer edge portions 180 extending perpendicularly from ends of curved center section 170 and extending to outer perimeter 124. Wherein curved center section 170 of curved wall 160 is formed having a height of 1½ inches. Wherein straight outer edge portions 180 taper downwardly from curved center section 170 to outer perimeter 124. Wherein curved wall 160 is formed having a length equal to 40% of the length of outer perimeter 124. Wherein curved wall 160 is formed having a height of 1½ inches.

Wherein improved dishware 100 is formed as plate 190 having a diameter of 12 inches. Wherein improved dishware 100 is formed as plate 190 having a circumference of 21.98 inches. Wherein improved dishware 100 is formed from a material chosen from a group of materials consisting of paper, cardboard, metal, plastic, and ceramic.

Improved dishware 100 may also be formed as bowl 500 having a depth between 4 and 5 inches as shown in FIG. 5.

The embodiments of the invention described herein are exemplary and numerous modifications, variations and rearrangements can be readily envisioned to achieve substantially equivalent results, all of which are intended to be embraced within the spirit and scope of the invention. Further, the purpose of the foregoing abstract is to enable the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and the public generally, and especially the scientist, engineers and practitioners in the art who are not familiar with patent or legal terms or phraseology, to determine quickly from a cursory inspection the nature and essence of the technical disclosure of the application. 

What is claimed is:
 1. An improved dishware comprising: a bottom surface; wherein said bottom surface is adapted to support said improved dishware upon a support surface; an outer edge portion; wherein said outer edge portion includes an outer perimeter around said improved dishware; a top surface including: a main surface area; wherein said main surface area is adapted to retain food products thereon; a curved wall; wherein said curved wall is spaced from said outer perimeter, extends upwardly from said main surface area, extends around a portion of said main surface area, and is adapted to hold said food products in position upon said main surface area.
 2. The improved dishware of claim 1, wherein said curved wall includes a curved center section and straight outer edge portions extending perpendicularly from ends of said curved center section and extending to said outer perimeter.
 3. The improved dishware of claim 2, wherein said straight outer edge portions taper downwardly from said curved center section to said outer perimeter.
 4. The improved dishware of claim 1, wherein said curved wall is formed having a length equal to 40% of the length of said outer perimeter.
 5. The improved dishware of claim 1, wherein said curved wall is formed having a height of 1½ inches.
 6. The improved dishware of claim 2, wherein said curved center section of said curved wall is formed having a height of 1½ inches.
 7. The improved dishware of claim 1, wherein said improved dishware is formed as a plate having a diameter of 12 inches.
 8. The improved dishware of claim 7, wherein said improved dishware is formed as a plate having a circumference of 21.98 inches.
 9. The improved dishware of claim 1, wherein said improved dishware is formed as a bowl having a depth between 4 and 5 inches.
 10. The improved dishware of claim 1, wherein said improved dishware is formed from a material chosen from a group of materials consisting of paper, cardboard, metal, plastic, and ceramic. 